Ravaged Destiny
by jms675
Summary: When Merlin's magic is revealed, Arthur does the only thing he can; banish him. A distraught Merlin tries to build a new life outside of Camelot and makes new allies. Years later, when tragedy strikes Camelot and magic seems to be the only chance, Arthur will need to make a decision. Set Post season 4
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

The night was cold as the wind howled mercilessly. The sky was overcast, letting the moonlight through in small pools. A young man stumbled through the thick and dark forest, away from Camelot. The wind whipped his hair and his worn brown jacket billowed behind him. His face was caked with dirt mixed in with his tears.

_You betrayed me, betrayed your friends, and betrayed Camelot!_

His vision became blurred as more tears fell. The man stumbled and fell. Gently, he picked himself up and leant against the tree. The king's words just kept swirling inside his head. The man knew he would need to keep going; everyone in Camelot was probably searching for him and the brave and noble knights of Camelot would soon find him. But the man found he did not have the energy to keep going. His breaths came out in heavy rasps and the cold was constricting his chest.

Wearily he rubbed his eyes, stopping the onslaught of tears. With great effort he took a deep breath and yelled in a foreign language.

Within minutes a loud rumbling could be heard. A massive shadow loomed over the young man and when he looked up, he found himself staring at huge yellow eyes and rough green scales.

"What has upset you, Merlin?" The Great Dragon asked. The tears that Merlin had managed to suppress only a few minutes cascaded down his cheeks once more.

Merlin spoke, his tears muffling his words making only a few words audible, but the dragon found he understood the gist of what the young man was saying. "Arthur…found…magic"

The Dragon watched the young warlock before him, waiting for him to elaborate. But Merlin found he could not find words to describe all that had transpired just a few hours ago. He didn't know how everything had turned downhill. It had been a day like any other and Merlin had discovered that the diplomats from Giliochtin were not here for peace talks. Merlin had seen the arrow heading straight for its target; King Arthur. Merlin did the only thing he could; use magic to change the arrow's direction. But the King had turned around. He saw the arrow and how it had deflected course and more importantly seen his trusted manservant's eyes flash gold. Arthur was no fool; he knew what that meant and had yelled the only thing he could. "Seize him"

_"You betrayed me, betrayed your friends and betrayed Camelot" _

_"Arthur I…"_

_"I don't want to hear it. I don't want to hear any more of your lies."_

_"But Arthur…"_

_"NO! I'm tired of your treachery."_

"I don't know what to do" Merlin moaned pitifully.

The Great Dragon simply stared at the young Warlock, not knowing how to offer his sympathies. A moment of silence passed as Merlin sat there with closed eyes and the Dragon watched him.

Then finally the Dragon spoke. "The knights are hunting for you. You cannot stay here for long"

"I know. But where do I go? I cannot go back to Ealdor. And I have nothing. Everything I own is back in Camelot."

The Dragon took a moment before he spoke. "There is a Druid camp over the mountains. They will be very happy to get you back on your feet"


	2. Magic is evil

**Thank you all so much for all the positive reviews!**

**Anyway just to clear this is set post S4. **

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Back in Camelot, the Royal palace was in disarray. Knights had already been dispatched to follow the sorcerer's trail into the forest. However, as this was a sorcerer they were dealing with, knights and guards alike were also searching in Camelot for the sorcerer just to make sure he wasn't hiding out somewhere in the city.

Currently, King Arthur was storming through the corridors. Queen Guinevere followed him nervously as did several guards, quaking under their king's fury. When he reached the physician's quarters, he pushed the door with such force that it slammed against the wall causing dust to fly.

The Physician jumped from his position where he had been bent over examining a concoction. When he saw who it was he straightened and fixed a cool gaze on the King.

"I suppose you knew about this Gaius, about Merlin?" The King asked his voice barely concealing the anger.

The Physician, to his credit did not flinch at his King's tone but instead met his gaze with fierce determination. "I've known since the moment Merlin saved my life" Gaius spoke in a tone that dared the King to speak against the statement. After a moment of holding the physician's gaze, Arthur looked away.

The King pointed to the door that led to Merlin's room. "Search his room" he ordered the guards. The guards scrambled to follow their King's orders.

Arthur then turned back to Gaius. Gwen stepped towards her husband in hopes she could prevent him doing something that he would later regret. Thumps and bangs could be heard from Merlin's room as the Guards rummaged through his belongings.

It was the physician that spoke first. "Sire, you are making a mistake in hunting for Merlin."

Arthur took a deep breath trying to calm his anger. "Gaius, you've served my father well and with loyalty. You have also shown the same loyalty to me so far. I know what Merlin means to you and I understand why you would want to protect him. But by choosing to practice magic, Merlin is a danger to Camelot."

"He has done you no harm" Gaius countered.

"Not yet, but he will. If there is anything that my father has taught me then it is that magic is evil. Magic corrupts Gaius. Soon Merlin will be unrecognisable and if I let him live he will be a threat to Camelot. Magic took my father away and it was magic that has twisted Morgana into the being we know today"

"Not all magic is like that" Gaius responded quietly turning away towards his workbench. The two monarchs watched as the physician arranged the vials filled with different coloured liquids.

Gaius did not move as he felt a warm hand on his back. He looked up into the Queen's gentle face. She had been a close friend of Merlin back when she had been a servant and even now that she was Queen she still came to Merlin for advice. Surely she would see that Merlin was a good man, that he intended Camelot no harm. But the physician felt his heart shatter at the Queen's words. "I know we wish otherwise, but Merlin has betrayed us all by choosing to practice magic. You've seen what magic can do. You've seen what it has done to Morgana. It is only a matter of time before it twists Merlin as well. We are all upset that our friend has chosen to practice magic but he made his choice. I know this is hard, you were so close to him, but we're here to help"

Gaius looked at his King and Queen. Surely they weren't this heartless? Surely they know that Merlin was not, could not be evil. But watching the King's hard-set face and the Queen's gentle yet determined face made him lose the faith he had in his monarchs. Just then the guards emerged from Merlin's room. They produced a thick leather bound book. The King took it with the tips of his forefinger and thumb, holding it as if it was dirt. Another guard held a long staff, its gnarled top held a bright blue crystal.

"Burn them!" Arthur ordered, handing the magic book back to the guard.

"Sire, you can't…" Gaius protested, but the King paid no mind to the physician and the guards marched out of the room ready to follow their king's orders. Gaius could not bear knowing that Merlin's magic book was about to be burned. He felt as if Merlin himself was about to be burned.

Gaius tried one last time. "Perhaps we have only seen one side of magic"

This however did not have the desired effect as Gaius had hoped. The King roared, knocking over a chair. "I'm sick of this Gaius. Why can't you understand that Merlin is not the man he once was?"

The physician flinched at the King's display. He looked away shuddering, his heart hammering.

"Arthur" the Queen warned quietly. Instantly, Arthur slumped, his anger dissipating.

"I'm sorry Gaius," the king apologised after a moment, "this has been a trying experience for us all. Perhaps time can help us get over this."

Gaius did not respond, but merely dipped his head as both monarchs nodded and took their leave. But he knew that time would not help, only Merlin's presence back in Camelot will help.

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**Slightly longer chapter. Next chapter, what does Merlin get upto? Please, Please, Please Review!**


	3. A new purpose

**So many people have made my story a favourite and are following it. It's so exciting! Yay!**

**Anyway, Mark asked : Why did Gaius not defend Merlin more? Why did he not point out that Merlin lied to Arthur to stop him killing his father, that it's his father's fault for all of this? Why did he not point out that Merlin was the one who healed Gwen's father?**

**Well to answer that Arthur had Merlin arrested even after seeing Merlin saving his life with magic. So I don't think Gaius explaining everything Merlin did would help in this situation. But don't worry, Arthur will eventually come to learn the truth himself and see that Merlin isn't evil.**

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The Druids had been very helpful especially more since he was the legendary Emrys. They had provided Merlin with food and shelter. He had also been given a few magic books and had been told he could stay for as long as he wanted. He felt bitter towards Arthur. He remembered Arthur's cold eyes when he had ordered for Merlin's execution and Merlin couldn't help but realise that he looked exactly like his father at that moment. It was then Merlin felt fear envelope him. Arthur wouldn't become as ruthless and heartless as his father would he? Merlin understood perfectly why Arthur distrusted magic; after all he had only seen the destructive side of magic and had lost his father to magic. But despite this he could not help the bitter resentment he felt towards the monarch. He felt furious that Arthur would see him as a traitor despite how loyal he had been all these years, that Arthur would immediately sentence him to death without bothering to hear Merlin's reasons. It was his worst fears realised and Merlin found he was angrier at himself than the ignorant king. Merlin knew what the king's reaction would be yet he had let himself hope that the king would be more accepting. But despite this he still yearned for Camelot and spent long evenings wishing he was back in Camelot. It was during one of these evenings when Iseldir, the Druid Chieftain, informed him that it was up to King Arthur to decide whether to accept him or not. The young King would in time come to realise that he needed magic and the impartial nature of magic and until then Merlin would need to be patient.

Iseldir had told him about some of the prophecies that druids had been guarding for centuries. Merlin had been given the opportunity to learn and read more about the prophecies concerning him, but Merlin refused to see or learn as he knew from first-hand experience how knowing ones future could be a curse. But Merlin had been able to learn more about himself. With magic being banned in Camelot and him being afraid of being caught using magic, Merlin had not been able to experiment with magic. He had only used the minimal amounts of magic necessary. But now staying with the druids, who immersed themselves with magic, Merlin was able to experiment with magic. Without those stifling restrictions that were in place in Camelot, he found he could do anything he wanted with magic. He could turn the water blue, he could sprout flowers wherever he chose, he could change large boulders into water fountains, he could make the simple orange flames of the camp fire blaze the different shades of the rainbow. Of course with many of these it had taken some time to find the counter-curse but it had all been in good fun and the young had all enjoyed it and the adults had shared secret smiles.

Merlin was finally able to realise what Gaius had meant when he said that his magic was different so long ago. Where the druids needed incantations for even the simplest of magic, Merlin found he only needed to think it before it happened. That did not mean Merlin did not use incantations, he just did not need them most of the time. But Merlin used incantations as he found they allowed him to channel and focus his magic better and he found he needed them for the more complex spells. But he did find some restriction with magic.

But despite all the help the druids gave him and enjoyment he had in the druid camp, Merlin could not help feeling that there was something else out there for him. He was reluctant to bring this up with the druids as they had welcomed him warmly and had been gracious hosts. But Iseldir seemed to understand when he casually mentioned, nearly three full moons after he had arrived at the druid camp, that the Great kingdom of Vestavia was in need of some powerful magic to heal their ailing king.

When Merlin had simply stared at the druid elder, Iseldir sighed.

"You have immense power. You can cure the king with your magic"

"With my magic?" Merlin repeated

The druid elder sighed again. "There are lands out there that are unlike Camelot; lands that don't share the same animosity towards magic as Camelot. Vestavia is one such place that is more sympathetic to magic users than Camelot ever was. In fact, before the great purge, Vestavia had some of the best healers in all the lands."

"But Vestavia and Camelot have been at odds with each since Uther destroyed the Pillar of life. Do you really think that they will let someone from Camelot near their King?"

"What Uther did to their sacred site was indeed a travesty. But that doesn't mean they will discriminate against all from Camelot. I am sure they will not be prejudiced against you."

Merlin nodded, contemplating all that Iseldir had told him.

"Do you really think that I will be able to heal their King?"

"I have no doubt that you will. This will also allow you gain some confidence and learn more about the world you live in."

Merlin nodded again, feeling quite stunned that the druid elder had so much faith in him.

"Shall I send word to Vestavia that you will be arriving?" Iseldir asked a moment later.

After a brief moment of consideration, Merlin nodded, his mind made. "Yes, I will go and do all that I can to cure the King."

Iseldir smiled. "I'm sure you'll find that your visit to Vestavia will be successful in more ways than one." Iseldir said cryptically.

Merlin wasn't sure what exactly Iseldir had meant, but something told him that he was meant to do this.

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**Please review! Tell me what you thought! Things will get interesting soon.**


	4. Betrayal stings

**Wow, so many lovely reviews! Thanks to all who reviewed.**

**Someone said that Merlin couldn't be afraid of Arthur. I'm sorry if i wasn't clear in my last chapter but what I meant was that Merlin is afraid of Arthur becoming like Uther. Merlin isn't afraid of Arthur, he's just afraid of Arthur proving his worst fears right. **

**So anyway here is chapter 4**

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Arthur stood at the training fields watching his knights spar. Normally, he would be amongst them, moving as quickly as the wind. But today he was content to stay back and watch his fellow knights show off their talents. Arthur made sure to keep a close eye in particular on Gwaine, Percival and Elyan. The knights fought ferociously, their sword moving like lightning.

Over the past few months Arthur had noticed his relationship with several of the knights, mainly Gwaine, and his physician was strained. Part of him knew that the short and clipped responses he now received from the physician were only to be expected. At first Gaius had tried telling Arthur of the things Merlin had done, feeding him nonsense like Merlin being born with magic. Arthur had scoffed at the ridiculousness of that; did Gaius really think Arthur foolish enough to fall for that? Arthur knew enough about magic to know that it was learnt. After that Arthur did not listen to Gaius, did not want to. Perhaps one day he would sit and talk to Gaius about it all, but now Arthur was too busy revelling in betrayal and self-pity. When he had brought Merlin's betrayal to the physician's attention he had muttered that sounded suspiciously like how did he think Merlin felt. To Gaius, Merlin could do no wrong, Arthur could only hope that time would heal their relationship.

But he had been immensely surprised that some of his knights would be so distant towards him. At first he had put it down too Merlin's treachery and absence and had assumed they would resume to their normal selves within no time. But soon days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months and still the knights kept their distance. Out of his closest knights only Leon seemed to carry on as usual and Arthur grew increasingly frustrated that the other knights still continued to maintain their distance.

Finally a month after the discovery of Merlin's magic had been discovered, Arthur decided to confront Gwaine but was shocked at the response he received.

"Why would I want to talk to someone who would condemn a man, who had just saved their life, to death?" Gwaine had all but yelled at him.

The fury in Gwaine's voice had stunned the King and for a moment he stood there gaping at the knight. After discovering Merlin's magic and his betrayal, Arthur had all but forgotten about the context of the said discovery. The fact that Merlin had revealed his magic when he had saved his King's life had been pushed to the back Arthur's mind. As he stood gaping Arthur realised that Gwaine was right. Merlin had indeed saved his life using magic. It was only when Gwaine had shook his head sadly and had turned to walk away when the King recovered his senses.

"He used magic, Gwaine. I'm sure you of all people understand the consequences of using magic" Arthur shouted at the retreating knight who made no attempt to respond whatsoever.

Arthur tried again. "Besides, Merlin lied to us all. How can we trust him to be loyal to Camelot?" Still Gwaine did not bother making a response and continued down the corridor.

Arthur couldn't understand how he was made the villain by the knight instead of the lying sorcerer. Even Percival, a man of few words, seemed to be disappointed in his king. Arthur had been more than shocked when the man had outright told him that he would not kill Merlin. Arthur knew the knights had been friends with Merlin but were they truly that blind? Could they not understand the evil nature of magic and how it twisted and corrupted one? So he had saved Arthur with magic, but that didn't mean he would forever remain this good-hearted. Besides if Merlin had lied about his magic, what else had he lied about? When he had brought this up with Gaius, he had simply given Arthur an unwavering gaze and said there had been an important reason why Merlin had hid his magic and if the King could not see that then he was a fool.

Only Gwen seemed to understand. Only she seemed to understand that Arthur didn't want to do this, didn't want to sentence his friend to death, but had to for the sake of the kingdom. Merlin had broken one of Camelot's fundamental laws. Arthur wouldn't dare admit it to anyone, but he was inwardly glad that the incessant search for the traitorous sorcerer had been stopped and hoped that Merlin had enough brains to not come near Camelot.

But that did not mean he didn't feel betrayed. He could not understand how his friend could betray him so. Merlin had known magic was outlawed, yet he had chosen to defy the laws and practice sorcery. How long had he been doing this? For Arthur, Merlin had been the only constant the last decade. He had always been there, and although Arthur was reluctant to admit, providing support and encouragement when needed. And although Arthur had often pushed him away, Merlin had helped him through the betrayals of Morgana, Aggravaine and even Gwen. The fact that Merlin would choose to betray him like this and lie to him like this had shaken Arthur to his very core. To Arthur it was the ultimate betrayal and these past few months he often found himself wondering just who could he trust when all those close to him had betrayed him.

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**Hope you all like this! I just wanted to explore how Arthur felt, as you can see he's beginning to feel confused. Next chapter- Merlin goes to Vestavia!**


	5. To Vestavia

**Thanks to all who reviewed! You guys are awesome! Sorry it took me a while to update!**

**Anyway, this is sort of a filler chapter. Enjoy!**

It was a three day horse ride to reach Vestavia from the druid camp. The druids had been very hospitable and Merlin had been reluctant to leave despite his feeling of emptiness. He feared that he would face the same reaction to his magic as Arthur in Vestavia despite Iseldir's reassurances.

It was nightfall when his horse galloped into the city of Vestavia. Despite it being dark, Merlin could make out the stark differences between Camelot and Vestavia. Where Camelot was a city made up of tall towers and spires, large domes seemed to be the favourite architectural feature of Vestavia. Even in the darkness, Merlin could see that the cobblestone streets of Vestavia were well kept unlike those back in Camelot. Merlin smiled, he had a feeling he was going to enjoy it here.

Riding into the Vestavian courtyard, Merlin was greeted by two guards. Both wore long purple cloaks that bore the insignia of the Royal household.

He climbed of his horse just as a young woman appeared through the darkness. She was dressed regally in a lavish green dress and her black hair tied neatly in a bun. She strode forward, standing before Merlin. Merlin could only assume this was the young princess.

"You are the man sent by the druids?" Her voice was strong, filled with authority.

"I am. Merlin at your service milady" Merlin curtsied.

"Are you really as skilled as the druids believe you to be?" Her voice was still strong, yet this time Merlin could hear a sense of desperation.

"I hope I am" Merlin told the lady honestly. She nodded, seeming to accept his words. She gestured for one of the guards to take Merlin's horse. Once the guard was leading the horse away towards the stables and Merlin held his pack and satchel, the princess turned leading Merlin into the palace through a side entrance.

Merlin followed her through long winding corridors, up several spiralling stairways until she finally came to a stop in front of worn out door. She rapped on the door twice before pushing it open. Merlin followed two steps behind.

Inside was what appeared to be a physician's quarters. The room was less cluttered and much neater than Gaius's had ever been and yet Merlin could still tell this was a physician's quarters from the numerous potions boiling on the workbench and the dried herbs hanging of a thin rod on one of the walls.

"Princess Isolde" The raspy voice brought Merlin's attention to the thin man standing in the middle of the room. He held a vial in one hand while his other hand held the place in the open book and was slightly hunched, as if he had been bent over peering at the book before the Princess had opened the door. The man peered curiously at Merlin who was standing just behind the princess, and Merlin realised he looked to be only several years older than himself.

"Eneth," the princess addressed the man, "this is Merlin. The man sent by the druids."

Eneth nodded in understanding as the Princess turned towards Merlin. "This is Eneth, our court physician."

"Eneth, is there a place for Merlin to sleep here?"

Eneth blinked a few times and straightened. "Uh, there is an antechamber through there. He can sleep there" he said pointing towards the door on the far wall. Merlin looked where the physician was pointing having only noticed the door.

The Princess nodded and spoke to Merlin.

"You must be tired from your long journey. I will leave you to rest. I will see you in the morning."

"Thank you" Merlin told her. The princess eyed him for a moment before sweeping out of the room.

Merlin turned towards the physician who had already turned back to his book. Merlin watched him read for a moment before turning to the shelf beside him. Jars had been stacked precociously and Merlin held back a fond smile as he remembered the disorderly shelves in Gaius's chambers. These past few months away from Camelot had made Merlin realise just how much he had grown to depend on Gaius. Gaius had been more than a father figure, providing support and guidance to Merlin when no one else could. Gaius had done all he could to keep Merlin and his magical secret safe. Merlin remembered the numerous times Gaius had scolded him to be careful.

"Have you much training in healing?" The raspy voice startled Merlin out of his reverie.

"I have some training in healing. I have always watched and assisted the court physician in Camelot. Much of my training came from that" Merlin told him.

"Gaius isn't it? I have heard much of his remarkable methods in healing. I myself have often referred to some of his works."

"Yes, he is very talented and dedicated in healing."

After a brief pause the man asked "Do you really have magic?" Merlin could hear the curiosity in his voice and he nodded.

"And you stayed in Camelot?" It was a simple question but Merlin could hear the disbelief in it. The way the physician said it made Merlin see the ridiculousness of it and he couldn't help his chuckle. It did seem quite stupid for someone with magic to stay in a place where magic was outlawed.

"It does seem stupid doesn't it?"

Eneth smile in response.

After a quick dinner of stew, Merlin decided to retire to bed early. He knew there was to be a long day ahead tomorrow. For three nights he had only slept on the hard ground so when Merlin tumbled onto the bed, he immediately drifted off to sleep.

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**Thanks for reading! Hopefully I'll have the next chapter posted soon. As always please review!.**


	6. Chapter 6

**I did say I will update soon. Here's chapter 6. **

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The next morning Merlin was awoken by a loud bang. It took him a few moments to become accustomed to his surroundings and realise that the noise had come from the physician's chambers.

When Merlin sleepily made his way to the physician's chambers, he found Eneth crouched on the floor trying to gather scattered glass.

The physician looked up when Merlin walked in. "I'm terribly sorry if I woke you"

"It's fine. I was awake already"

The physician nodded. "There's breakfast for you" he said pointing to the plate on the table before turning back to his task.

Merlin spotted the plate on the table and couldn't resist the grin when he saw the bread and cheese lying casually on the plate. Merlin knew it was silly, but it had been months since he had had cheese and so felt it perfectly excusable to quickly cut up the cheese into edible sizes and shovel the pieces into his mouth. Thankfully, the physician was too concerned with cleaning his chambers to notice the bizarre actions of his guest.

After taking a mouthful of bread, Merlin decided to ask the question that had been plaguing since he had heard of the ailing king. "If I may, but what is wrong with the King?"

Merlin noticed the physician stiffen as he set down the broom. Sighing Eneth came closer and took a seat opposite to Merlin.

"I don't really know what is wrong with the King. It was two months ago when he came to me complaining about aches and pains. The King is an elderly man and so it is quite normal for him to experience these pains. So I prescribed one of my usual tonics to ease his pains. I didn't really see or think it was anything unusual. It is quite normal for the elderly to suffer bodily pains as their body loses its strength."

"So what happened?" Merlin asked.

"His condition grew worse. My tonics did not seem to work and I began prescribing stronger potions. Then one day he came to me shaking."

"Shaking?" Merlin raised a brow in curiosity.

"Yes, shaking. His entire body was shaking and he couldn't walk straight. I had never seen anything like it before. I told him to get some rest. He was like that for a week or so. Despite my insistence that he rest more, he continued doing all his duties as normal. The King is a very stubborn man, so I had taken to prescribe him sleeping draughts hoping that long, dreamless sleeps would help him."

"Did it?"

"It did initially. He did seem to be getting better. He was not shaking as much as before, but then two weeks ago in a council meeting he just collapsed. It was two days before he woke up. He was weak and could not take more than five steps. The next day I had gone to check on him after making my usual rounds and I found him collapsed on his chair."

The physician grew quiet and Merlin waited for him to continue.

"What's wrong?" Merlin asked after a moment of silence. By this time he had finished his breakfast and had set aside his plate.

"I could be wrong, but the thought has occurred to me that the king may be…poisoned." The Physician had spoken the last word so lowly that for a moment Merlin thought he had misheard.

"Did you say poisoned?" Merlin clarified.

"Yes. It's just a thought I had. When I lifted the King onto his bed, he felt warm, too warm. A few days later I noticed his heart was failing. He also seemed to be hallucinating when he was awake."

"Hallucinating?"

"Yes, I once found him trying to attack his chair, claiming it was an enemy of his. The Princess informed me that the King once thought she was her mother. I've been giving him more sleeping draughts and potions to calm him down.

"What poison do you think it is?"

I'm not too sure, but the symptoms the king displays seems suspiciously similar to that of the poison venitite."

"Venitite? But that is a deadly poison, and as of yet there is no proper cure for it. Do you really think the King may have had venitite poisoning?"

"As I said I could be wrong. But I have feeling that we are dealing with poisoning. Whatever poison the king may have been given would certainly have been a very weak strain. Otherwise the king would surely be dead by now."

"And this way, if the king was poisoned, it would seem like he died from natural causes because he has been ailing for months."

The physician nodded. "It would seem so, and if I am correct in assuming that it is venitite poisoning, then magic is only chance to save the king."

Merlin nodded, pondering Eneth's words. "Who would poison the King?"

Before the physician could answer there was a knock on the door. Before either could move, Princess Isolde stood in the doorway dressed in an extravagant purple dress.

"I have come for my father's medicine"

Eneth nodded, handing her a vial. The Princess turned to leave before realising something.

"Perhaps you should come with me" she told Merlin.

"Perhaps you should" Eneth agreed, nodding at Merlin.

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**I'm sorry nothing much happens in this chapter. But I promise things will get interesting!**

**Anyway, Please take a look at my new story The Silver Lining!**


	7. To Kill the King

_Sorry for the long wait. I actually wrote this last week but didn't get around to posting it. _

_Anyway here's chapter 7. _

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**Chapter 7**

Merlin walked a few steps behind the princess as etiquette required. He found himself the object of several strange looks. Servants and guards eyed him strangely, possibly wondering who the strange man following the princess was. The Princess did not seem to care and kept striding towards the King's chambers.

Merlin had already come to understand the princess as a brisk woman and knew there was more to her than what met the eye. Just as they turned into a corridor, two guards hurried towards them.

"Princess, come quick!" One of them gasped. The other guard was eyeing Merlin suspiciously. Merlin frowned; he hadn't done anything to warrant such behaviour.

"What is the matter, Gareth?"

"It's the King, something's happened!"

The Princess picked up her pace, half jogging, half-walking towards the King's chambers. As they arrived at the door of the King's chambers, they found a guard slumped on the floor.

"He's been knocked out. Tom found him like this when he came here a few minutes ago to change posts." Gareth explained.

The Princess nodded and pushed open the door. Merlin followed behind her and the two guards trailed behind them. The King's chambers was very much like Arthur's rooms in Camelot, except instead of helmets and armour decorating one side of the wall there was a large bookshelf housing many large tomes.

The King was lying on his bed, his covers up to his chin. His face was pale and his sunken eyes were closed. His matted grey hair stuck to his face as beads of sweat covered his face. But what was more worrying was the black leaking from his mouth.

Tentatively, Merlin undid his neckerchief and carefully smeared some of the black substance on the corner of the cloth. Bringing the cloth to his nose, Merlin took a sniffed it and immediately grimaced. The smell was foul!

"What is it?" The Princess asked, her eyes wide with concern.

"I'm not entirely sure yet"

"But you have some suspicion of what it is?"

Merlin looked up at the Princess. Her brows were furrowed, and her eyes were wide showing her desperation.

"Yes" He told her. Merlin had read enough books and had listened to Gaius enough times to know that this substance was a mixture of what he guessed to be different poisons. He would need to test it and verify with Eneth to be completely sure as to what it was and to be able to find an antidote. But Merlin knew one thing; this was not venitite.

"He has been poisoned" Merlin told the others, though it was rather pointless as it was pretty obvious.

"Is he still…alive?" Gareth asked. The King lay so still, and it was difficult to see if his chest moved.

Merlin felt around the King's neck. He could feel a faint a thrumming. It was very faint, but nevertheless a pulse.

"Yes"

"Could you…save him?" The Princess asked, anxiety clouding her voice.

Merlin did not reply. He was not entirely sure he could do something. He could use magic, but he did not want to give the Princess false hope. The wrong spell could make everything worse.

"We need to find the culprit, perhaps he may be able to give us an indication as to the poison used." Gareth spoke. Merlin thanked him silently for changing the subject, but he was doubtful that the poisoner would reveal such a thing.

"Shall I send a search party?"

"Tom would've taken his post three hours ago, so the poisoning must've happened in the Last three hours" The other guard spoke. Gareth nodded, agreeing.

"I will ask around" Gareth said and took his leave, ready to begin the investigation. The other guard, whose name Merlin still did not know, did not follow Gareth and instead moved closer to Merlin.

"I have never seen you around before. Who are you? When did you come here?" His looked at Merlin through narrowed eyes.

"I'm Merlin and I arrived yester night" Merlin replied, not liking where the conversation was heading.

"And the King was poisoned early this morning" The guard mused.

"What are you implying, Byron?" The Princess asked sharply.

"Nothing, milady. It just seems suspicious that the King is poisoned after he arrived"

Merlin stared at Byron, mouth open and eyes wide.

"Are you suggesting that I poisoned the King?" He asked in a quiet voice.

"Perhaps I am" Byron spoke in a tone that dared Merlin to speak otherwise.

For a few moments silence reigned as they pondered the implications of the guards words. Merlin himself was stunned that he would be accused of such a thing. The Princess seemed to glower at the guard and Byron looked down, abashed from bringing it up.

Princess Isolde seemed to recover first. "He did not poison the King" She told the guard, her voice hard and full of steel. Merlin looked up, surprised by her tone of voice.

The guard, although red-faced, protested. "You cannot be sure…"

"I am sure because I sent for him" The Princess said sternly. Byron looked astonished and truly admonished.

"I'm sorry, Milady, I did not know"

Isolde took a _deep_ breath. "Fetch Eneth" She ordered the guard. Byron nodded and scurried away.

Once he was out the door, Isolde visibly relaxed. "I'm truly sorry for that" She told Merlin softly.

Merlin gave her a weak smile. It was only to be expected. He turned back to the King who still remained unconscious. His brow glistened with sweat. Merlin placed a palm over the King's closed eyes and muttered a spell to quell the fever.

The Princess watched as her father's breathing became more noticeable, his chest moving up and down slightly. She looked over at the man standing on the other side of her father. He was her only hope to save her father and perhaps even the kingdom. She had not paid much attention to the man before, but she noticed now how desperately thin he was. His neckerchief had dwarfed his neck, but now that he had taken it off she noticed how prominent his protruding neck bones were. The druids had told her that he had been banished from Camelot for his magic and she wondered how he had taken all that. Perhaps she could ask him to stay in Vestavia after her father was healed.

* * *

_Please do review! __I had my uni orientation yesterday. I'm still not sure if I should feel excited or dread university. Anyway I'm starting classes next week and my timetable is packed, so I don't know how often I'll post. But I'll try to work out a schedule later. __I've got the next two chapters written so I might post them soon._


	8. Chapter 8

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed! This story has 49 reviews! Only one more to 50! I had never imagined people will enjoy this story this much._

_Anyway, here is chapter 8_

* * *

Gareth was no fool; he knew the servants were the eyes and ears of the castle. They lurked in the shadows and while no one took notice of them, they saw and heard things that others wouldn't. So the first thing that he did was pay the Palace Stewardess a visit. To say she was surprised was an understatement. No guard or knight ever went to her part of the palace. Knights and Guards were under the command of the Head Commander.

But after a few suspicious looks and a "What do yer want with't" Gareth finally had a list of all the servants working in the palace and another list of servants who would have been working in the early hours of the morning. After rolling the scrolls up and tucking it into his belt, Gareth decided to head to the watch tower to see if the guard stationed there had seen anyone leaving the city in the early hours of the morning. To his utter irritation, Gareth found the Guard on duty softly snoring. After kicking the man awake, he was informed that the guard's shift had ended and he was waiting for 'Freddy' to take his shift.

Rolling his eyes, Gareth asked the man if the man had seen anyone leave the palace in the early of the morning to which the guard replied in the negative. Not at all feeling confident with the answer, Gareth decided to head to the stables to see if the squires had seen anyone leave or if a horse that shouldn't be was missing. While Gareth couldn't be entirely sure, he still couldn't rule out the probability that the culprit may have left the palace after committing the act, no treason, Gareth reminded himself.

While making his way down to the stables, he thought to himself. Whoever did this would've had a very ambitious motive. But who in Vestavia would've had such a thing? Sure everyone wanted to be King, but most would not benefit in attempting to kill the King. If a noble was behind this, they most likely would not have done the poisoning themselves, no they would've hired an assassin or perhaps even a greedy servant. From what the man with the Princess said, Gareth could gather that whoever did this would have known a great deal about poisons. An assassin was very likely but the question was who had the motive to do so?

As he was making his way to the entranceway of the palace, he noticed a most curious thing. Just under the alcove below the servant staircase he noticed two figures standing in the shadows. A closer look confirmed that it was Lord Darius speaking to one of the nobles whom Gareth had a strong inkling was called Fernando. Lord Darius was a feeble man and was not someone many got along with. Gareth himself did not particularly like the man but he made sure to keep his opinions to himself after all the man was the King's younger brother. The other man –Fernando- if that was his name, had been seen by Gareth around the palace on numerous occasions and often Gareth had seen the darker man with Lord Darius. Gareth had never spoken to the man personally but had always felt rather uncomfortable in his presence. Gareth subconsciously stepped closer to the two men or conspirators as Gareth found himself thinking. He could hear snippets of the conversation.

"…grateful for such help…inconvenience…" Lord Darius was saying in his raspy drawl.

"…anything I can…pleasure…only a menace" The other replied.

Gareth frowned; what on earth were they talking about?

He made to move closer to the unsuspecting pair when a loud clang was heard from behind Gareth where a servant had accidently dropped something. This startled the two men and began looking around nervously and eyed Gareth suspiciously when their gaze fell on him. Gareth simply smiled at them pleasantly and acted like he was merely passing by and not all at eavesdropping. Once out of their eyesight, he visibly relaxed. Something was going on here and he intended to find out.

Eneth had soon arrived and to the dismay of the Princess did not know what the black substance was. He sadly informed them that it would take hours to test and work out what the compound was, time the King did not have. Merlin offered to look through the few magic books he had brought with him to see if he could find anything to help the King.

Midday past and Merlin still found himself flipping through his books in the physician's chambers. Occasionally, he had stopped to help Eneth with chopping this and that and even measuring out the correct ingredients. Merlin found that being able to use magic made things much easier.

He looked up, hearing Eneth exclaim from the other side of the room. "What is it?" Merlin asked, already making his way over to Eneth who was examining the milky contents of a beaker.

"I am fairly sure I know what the poison is."

Merlin raised a brow, "So you can make the antidote?"

"I believe I can, but…" Eneth trailed off looking solemn.

"But?" Merlin prompted, not at all liking Eneth's expression.

"It will take time, time I'm afraid that the King does not have"

Merlin nodded, his mind elsewhere recalling something, a smile gracing his features. Eneth looked perplexed as to why he would be smiling at a time like this.

"I might be able to help with that"

Eneth continued to stare, confused. "How?"

"It's a spell I came across. Basically it would transfer some of my energy to the dying King giving him some energy to stay alive or at least in theory anyway."

Eneth frowned, "Would it not drain you of energy?"

"It would, but it would not be enough to cause much damage to me"

The physician still looked doubtful. "Eneth, we are running out of time. The King only has mere hours to live. If I do this, it will buy us more time, giving you enough time to make the potion."

After a moment Eneth nodded. "Fine, but don't try to cause yourself much harm by trying to help the King"

Merlin merely smiled in response and darted out of the room and sprinted towards the King's chambers, dodging past servants and guards that wandered the palace corridors. He skidded to a stop in front of the King's room and gently knocked on the door before walking in. The Princess was seated beside the King's bed, her face tear stained. Seeing Merlin she wiped her tears with the pads of her fingers and sat up.

"What is it?" She asked earnestly; almost pleadingly.

"Eneth can make an antidote, but it will take time. It is unlikely the King will last that long; he has only mere hours left"

"Oh" Isolde's face crumpled.

"But I can do something"

The Princess looked up, hopeful.

"It's a," Merlin continued, "It's a spell I came across some time ago. It won't heal the King, but it'll give him some energy. It'll keep the King alive until Eneth finishes making the antidote" Hopefully, Merlin added silently.

"That's good, isn't it?" The Princess smiled weakly.

Merlin nodded, moving forward to stand by the King's head. The Monarch remained as motionless as ever, his chest barely moving. Merlin looked up at the Princess, who had moved to stand on the other side of the bed. She nodded, encouraging him to continue.

Gently, Merlin placed his hands on the King's chest and closed his eyes. The Princess watched as he murmured a spell, a blinding white light encircling his hands and her father's chest. The light seemed to pulsate and glow even brighter. In a moment the light was gone and Merlin was straightening up, watching the King's face intently. Isolde looked between Merlin and her father, expectantly.

"Well?" She asked desperately.

Merlin did not answer, gazing at the King's face for any sign of movement…life…anything, hoping beyond belief that his spell worked. The King lay still as motionless as a log and Merlin slumped in defeat. This situation reminded him of Uther's death and he prayed that the outcome would not be the same. His prayers were answered when a moment later when the King's mouth twitched. His eyes opened slowly and he stared up at them through half-closed eyelids.

"Father" Isolde gasped, grasping his hands in hers.

The King's thick gaze landed on Merlin's face before turning to Isolde.

"Is…Isolde" He breathed. The tears she had supressed, seemed to explode, flowing down her face like a river.

"Father" She cried.

"I know…I know what you…what you are doing" The King told his daughter, his voice raspy.

"Father?"

"I know…you are trying…trying to save me"

Isolde just stared back at her father confused. "What do you mean?"

"Leave me"

"Father you are dying. I'm not going to let you die" Isolde cried. Merlin suddenly felt like he was intruding, and began to back away.

"I have…lived a long life. It's time…time for me…to go"

"I can't watch you die, father, I…" Isolde wept.

"Isolde…Isolde, listen to me, my time has come. I…have lived…a long life. It is now your turn…you will be a great Queen and…"

"You want me to be Queen?" Isolde interrupted, surprised.

The King gently raised his hand to his daughter's cheek, a feeble smile on his lips. "I do, you have a noble heart. I've watched…you grow... and I know without a doubt you will be a wise Queen"

"But what about Uncle? Wouldn't he…"

"My brother Darius…he's a good man...but he's not fit to be a King…he's too easily influenced…weak-minded…I've spoken to him…"

"But the court…the court will never accept a woman to rule"

"My dear…I have that sorted...in there…a scroll…"

Merlin hurried to obey opening the drawer the King pointed to. Only one thing was in there; a brown tinged scroll. Gingerly he picked it up and handed it to the Princess. She took with a curious gaze at her father. With careful fingers she unrolled the scroll. She gasped, a sob escaping her.

"Keep it safe…there are those in court who will seek to destroy it"

* * *

_This chapter was a little difficult to write, but I hope I have done it justice. I'm sure you can all guess where I'm going with this. I wasn't always planning for it to go this way, but the idea hit me the other day and I thought why not, so here it is._

_Review please. Hugs and cookies to the 50th reviewer!:)_


	9. Chapter 9

_"How could you know, I haven't told anyone"_

_"Alright you found out. I'll tell you," he bent low as if whispering a secret, "I'm psychic"_

_She laughed. "No you're not"_

_"It's true"_

Gwen awoke with a gasp, her mind in the twilight zone between reality and dream. The memory of that dreaded incident hit her with such a ferocity and clarity. Merlin had somehow known that her father was better and when she had been arrested for sorcery she'd heard that he had confessed of being a sorcerer. She'd heard that Arthur had dismissed as the talk of a lovesick fool. Now she wondered if he had been speaking the truth. Had it been Merlin that had cured her father? It had to be, who else could it have been? All the others who had suffered the sickness passed away.

Merlin had always known when there was trouble in Camelot. He had seemed to know about Morgana and Aggravaine way before anyone even began suspecting. Then she remembered how Merlin had survived the dorocha where no else had and had realised it was her when Morgana had transformed her into a deer. Then there was the lamia, how she had shrieked when Merlin had so much as stepped two feet near her. It was obvious to anyone that had bothered to look that Merlin had magic. Gwen couldn't believe how ignorant she had been for not even noticing that her friend had magic. Yet Merlin hadn't seemed to do anything to hurt anyone, in fact he had just saved Arthur's life when his magic was discovered. So what did that mean? Could it be…? But then there was Arthur, the man sleeping peacefully unaware of her sleep addled thoughts, who had lost so much to magic. She knew Merlin's betrayal had taken a toll on her husband. Months may have passed since Merlin's banishment, but she often saw him look over his shoulder to say something before he seemed to realise that the usual presence wasn't there. And she's see the haunted expression on his face as he realised why the presence wasn't there.

Then what of Merlin, banished for saving the life of his King just because he had used magic? Was it fair on him? She suddenly found herself thankful for what Merlin had done, if he hadn't done anything that day then she wouldn't have a husband anymore. Gwen shook her head; why was she feeling this way? Magic was evil, she had seen the terror it could cause, but Merlin had used it to save her husband's life. So it wasn't evil? Gwen nearly growled in frustration. All she wanted to do was sleep but instead these thoughts kept plaguing and she found herself feeling more and more perplexed by the contradiction that was magic. She would not get any sleep tonight. Swinging her legs over the bed, she grabbed her cloak. Only one person could give her the answers she wanted and she didn't care if it was the middle of the night.

* * *

A day later the King of Vestavia passed away in his slumber. The Princess had gone to visit her father in the morning, when she discovered her father's cold motionless body. She had let out a grief stricken shriek that woke even ghosts. Her only solace was that her father had passed into death peacefully and painlessly.

Eneth had still made the antidote despite the King's desire to pass on into the next life, but the Princess had refused to disobey her father's final wish. She finally conceded to allow Eneth to give him a tonic that would ease his pains. The King had spent his last hours as peaceful and comfortable as one possibly could.

The King had been loved and respected by all his subjects. He had been a man of truth, ruling wisely and justly. Though it had been expected of their aged King for some time, the entire kingdom had truly been shocked by their beloved King's death. Rumours began to fly; some claimed the King had been poisoned, others that the King murdered in his sleep and the more outlandish rumours claimed that the King had ended his own life.

Funeral plans were being made while the subjects of Vestavia waited with bated breath as to who would take the throne. As Eneth informed Merlin, the late King had no male heirs only three daughters. The two eldest were already married to wealthy Lords. The King's brother, Darius, though a very likely choice in getting the throne was very unpopular with the townspeople and his reckless son was even more so. Merlin remembered what the King had told Isolde, how he wanted her to be Queen.

"Wouldn't Isolde inherit the throne?" Merlin had asked.

To that Eneth had sighed deeply. Although the man was only a few years older than Merlin himself, in the past few days there had been moments where the man had acted as if he were Gaius's age. "I'm afraid not many nobles would agree to being ruled by a woman, especially one as young as Isolde"

"Even if the King wished it so?"

"Perhaps, but the King never named her the heir of his throne. Unless there was written documentation naming her his heir I don't think it would be possible for her to be Queen even if the late King wished for it"

Merlin had simply nodded his suspicions as to what the scroll the old King had given his daughter finally confirmed.

The funeral was held two days after the King's death in the palace courtyard. It was a solemn affair. The King's lifeless body was dressed in a white robe and laid out on the pyre. The Princess stood up front with her Uncle Darius and cousin whose name, Merlin was told, was Curtin. Where Darius was lean and sickly-looking, Curtin was short and well-built. The noble stood behind them and with them the knights of Vestavia stood in formation, dressed in their chain mail and purple cloaks. Most of the townspeople had also come, standing in the back mourning the loss of their king. Merlin stood beside Eneth near the knights as Curtin lit the pyre and Merlin watch as the flames licked the wood and devoured the cold body. Staring at the flames as it hissed and inched closer to the body, Merlin could not help but remember his fear of being burnt on the pyre back in Camelot.

The rest of the day past in sombre silence. The servants and townspeople resumed their duties, completing them silently. Even the weather was overcast providing a suitable backdrop for the funeral. He was in the Physician's chambers helping Eneth make balms, poultices and various tinctures when a very tense Gareth barged in.

"Eneth can you identify this?" A small phial was shoved into his hands. The phial was thin and was as long as Merlin's tall finger and had a small glass stopper. Inside was a pale green liquid.

"Where did you find this?" Merlin asked.

"In between the King's mattress. It looked like someone was making a hasty escape, trying to hide it out of sight. I would've nearly missed it if hadn't seen the strange lump on the mattress. So do you know what it is?"

"How come none of the servants cleaning the King's room found it?"

"They haven't been given access to the room. The Princess didn't want anyone going in there. She only let me in today to search the room." Gareth said.

Eneth took of the glass stopper and took a whiff of the liquid. He grimaced. "I'd say this is foxglove"

"Foxglove?"

"In small amounts, this plant can be very beneficial, but given over a period of time it can be poisonous. It's not a deadly poison, but if given over a long period of time and if mixed with other poisons it could be dangerous. It could cause weariness, loss of sight and if taken over a prolonged period of time could even cause hallucinations."

"You said the King suffered from hallucinations before. Do you think perhaps it was foxglove instead of venitite?" Merlin asked Eneth.

"Perhaps, yes. Venitite is a deadly poison and the King would've surely passed away a long time ago if it had been venitite. So it could be foxglove." Eneth mused.

"So these past few months when the King has been bedridden he's been poisoned?" Gareth looked confused.

Eneth nodded. "Yes I only began suspecting two weeks ago. When I told the Princess, she wanted it to be kept quiet."

"So that's why you're here" Gareth said to Merlin.

Merlin nodded.

"Whoever did this would've had complete access to the King's chambers. I'm assuming that the foxglove would've had to been mixed in daily with the King's food or water right?" Gareth looked at Eneth for confirmation who nodded, "So someone who had access to the King's food, a servant possibly and I think I might know who could help us"

* * *

_Uni started for me so updating will become irregular. I'll try to keep the chapters longer to compensate. Try being the key word here, but I'll try!_


	10. Chapter 10

"James, that's who the Palace stewardess said delivered the King's breakfast and lunch everyday" Gareth explained to Merlin as the pair made their way to the kitchens to see if they could find the said servant; James. Merlin had decided to assist Gareth in the investigation, after all, he did have plenty of experience sneaking around and spying on people from Camelot and now that the King had passed away he didn't really have a purpose in Vestavia. He could help Eneth with his work, but Merlin had never really enjoyed doing physician's work.

The Royal kitchens was bustling with activity when they arrived. Supper was only a few hours away and the cooks and maids were slaving away in preparing their masters' food. The pair weaved their way through the activity, trying to avoid knocking into people and flying cutlery. In the corner they spotted a scullery maid peeling a basket load of potatoes. Gareth made a beeline for her and Merlin followed behind.

"I've not seen him today," she said when asked if she knew where James was, "in fact I don't think I've seen him all week"

"You sure about that?" Gareth asked.

"Quite sure" The maid nodded, turning back to the potatoes.

"Oi, you two. Whadda yer think yer doin' 'ere?" Gareth and Merlin turned around and found themselves staring at the head cook. She was a plump woman and was waving a rolling pin around threateningly. Merlin's eyes grew wide; he'd had enough experience in Camelot's kitchens to know how much being smacked by a rolling pin hurt.

"You wouldn't know where James is would you?" Gareth said. Apparently Gareth didn't have the said experience.

"James? The lad that takes the King's food?"

Gareth nodded. The cook seemed to think about it. "Can't say I do, now scram" she finally told them.

The two muttered a few thanks and sorries before scrambling out of the kitchen.

"So James, the servant that takes the King his food, hasn't been seen for a week. This is rather suspicious. And no one has reported him missing" Gareth scratched his chin, pacing the corridor.

"That might have something to do with the fact that there wasn't a need to deliver the King's food for the past couple of days" As soon as the words were out of Merlin's mouth he winced at his poor tact; the King had only passed away days ago.

Gareth however didn't notice. "Yes, but someone would've noticed his absence"

"Do you know where he lives? We could go see if he's there"

Gareth nodded.

It was near nightfall when the pair found themselves standing in front of a wooden cottage on one of the narrower town streets, that James supposedly lived in. One of the young squire boys had told them where James lived, also informing them that he too hadn't seen the servant for a few days. In fact the last anyone had seen James was about five days ago when he had been returning home after a hard day of work.

Merlin knocked on the door but there was no answer. After a few moments of waiting, Gareth kicked the door and Merlin winced as the wood splintered. The wood had been so thin that all it needed was a little pressure to snap in half. The flimsy wooden structure of the house would not have done much to keep the cold out. But such was the life of the poor; they could not afford such things. But Merlin supposed it would suffice in Vestavia where the climate was much warmer. But in Camelot anyone living in a structure like this would've frozen to death. In Camelot Merlin had been fortunate to have lived in the court Physician's chambers in the citadel in Camelot and had thick stone walls to protect him from the cold. Not that it did much, he had often woken up shivering in the night especially in the colder months.

The cottage inside was rather bare. A parted curtain hung in the middle of the room, separating the tiny house into two rooms. A cot lay behind the curtain, its sheets unmade. Gareth opened the wooden cupboards that was beside him and found them empty, save for a pair of frayed boots. The barrels behind the curtain that would normally hold grains were also surprisingly empty.

"Looks like he ran" Gareth spoke looking around at the room.

Merlin could only agree. He was about to turn away when something caught his eyes. Beside the barrels, on the stone floor, there were what looked like shreds of parchment. He picked up one of the pieces and found there was writing on it. It looked like some kind of message or letter had been torn to shreds and left here. Waving a hand over the shreds, Merlin's eyes flashed gold. The pieces began to glow blue and swirled as they pieced themselves together forming a single piece of parchment.

Gareth hurried over, seeing the obvious display of magic. "What is it?"

Merlin did not respond as his eyes skimmed over the parchment. The penmanship was neat and cursive and suggested a good early education.

_Good Job, but soon the knights will be following your trail. So I suggest you leave the city as soon as possible and we may even be able to arrange for your sister to meet you along the way._

"So James poisoned the King" Gareth stated with finality.

"Possibly. But this last poisoning could not have been done by him. The King was only found poisoned three days ago and James hasn't been seen for five days"

"So? He could've done so before he left. If what you say is true and the King has been poisoned for a prolonged period of time, James is clearly the culprit here. He poisoned the King."

"It looks like he might've been blackmailed. He seems to be the victim just as much as the King" Merlin said a moment later, nodding at the parchment.

"I think you might be right, but he still needs to be brought to justice. Why would he leave the pieces here"

"Maybe he wanted us to find it?" Merlin guessed.

"Maybe. We need to figure out who orchestrated the whole thing. Could you maybe use magic to find out who the owner of this handwriting is?"

"I don't know yet but I don't need magic to tell me that this writing belongs to a noble or at least someone who could afford a good education"

Gareth opened his mouth to reply, but his words were drowned out by the noise of galloping horses. Gareth frowned as he threw the front door open and looked to his right where the long purple cloaks of the Vestavian knights trailed behind them as they disappeared out of view towards the citadel.

"What is happening?" Merlin asked, as several other townspeople also poked their heads out of their homes in curiosity, wondering who could be riding into the city at such a fast rate. Gareth did not answer and instead sprinted towards the citadel. Letting out a sigh of irritation, Merlin followed the knight. Merlin scurried to keep up as the knight loped through alleyways taking shortcuts in an attempt to get to the citadel quickly. Reaching the palace courtyard, they found several horses being led away towards the stables by the stable hands. Gareth did not pause as he took the front steps two at a time. Merlin followed behind, breathless as he tried to keep up with the knight's long strides.

They burst through the council chambers in time to hear one of the knights speak in a breathless rasp. "A great army is marching this way"

Only five people were present in the council chambers when Merlin and Gareth arrived; Princess Isolde, the three knights who had just rode in and Eneth.

"Please explain" The Princess asked the knight that had spoken.

"Milady, we were out near the Northern border investigating the thefts as you ordered when we came across a large camp in the forest nearby. They were holding torches and banners. Some of the villagers told us they had seen various boats arrive on the shore in the past few weeks. We left behind three of our knights to warn and help nearby villages."

"Who were they?" The Princess asked, almost hesitantly as if she did not want to know.

"We believe it may be the Northern Raiders."

"The Vikings" Gareth breathed from beside Merlin.

Merlin frowned; he'd heard many brutal tales about the Vikings while he was growing up. They spoke of a vicious people who were born to fight. "I thought they were just stories." Merlin whispered to Gareth. They'd been told to children in his village to make them behave but never in his wildest dreams had he thought that these people, the Vikings, were real.

"No, they are very real. They come from distant lands across the seas. Our people have always suffered at their hands, I've heard my father speak of the many atrocities they committed. For centuries they've plundered many of the seafaring villages along the Northern border, stealing their livelihoods and what they did to women..." Gareth trailed off almost fearfully, "but for the last decade or so they haven't disturbed us. It seems that was too good to last."

"Are you sure they are the Northern Raiders? Perhaps they were Jasin's men?" Eneth spoke.

"Eneth have you not heard the rumours? The rumours that Jasin has forged an alliance with the Northern Raiders, the Vikings?" Gareth asked.

"I have, but they could be just that; rumours. We don't know if these rumours are true. For all we know Jasin may have spread them to intimidate us" Eneth argued.

"Intimidate us?" Gareth scoffed, "What reason would he have to intimidate us? Besides we can't just rule out the possibility of an alliance between Jasin and the Vikings. We could be facing two armies if it were true."

Before anyone could respond, the double doors of the Council chambers opened with a bang. Lord Darius strode in, the very picture of annoyance, as two other council members followed behind.

"What is the meaning if this?" He all but exclaimed as he made his way to the centre of the gathering. It was the princess that dared to speak first. "My Lord, it seems we have an army approaching us from the North"

Lord Darius stared at his niece, gauging her expression, perhaps trying to fathom if she was speaking in jest. After a moment he spoke. "Then what are we waiting for?" he asked quietly, "prepare for battle. We shall face them before they reach us, show them our mettle" he told the knights.

"Uncle, we must not be hasty…"

"Hasty? Child, they are almost upon our doorstep and you don't want us to be hasty," he turned to the knights, "how far away were they?"

"Perhaps three days away the last we saw them, milord. We hurried back as fast as we could" One knight answered.

"Did you hear that Isolde? We have no time to spare. We must prepare. Do not fret about these matters child, I will take care of it" he turned to the rest of the council room, "We ride out in an hour" he spoke with finality. No one refuted it and Lord Darius, satisfied, made to exit the chambers.

"No" The Princess spoke with such assurance and determination causing the occupants of the Council Chambers watch her with curiosity. Lord Darius however was beyond just curious. The man turned around slowly, his eyes flashing and his jaws clenched. "What do you mean no?" He hissed.

"I mean no disrespect Uncle, but I do believe we must not be hasty. I understand that we have no time to spare, but we need to plan and strategize carefully. If the Vikings are involved, it is best if we work out a strategy to face them. Besides we don't not know when they will attack"

"The Vikings? What utter nonsense! They haven't attacked in years why would they do so now?" He nearly laughed at the ridiculousness of it but stopped as he saw the fearful and sombre looks of the people around him. "You're serious" he said quietly, "Isolde, as I said let me take care of this. You do not have the knowledge of battle strategy."

"No Uncle, it is time I commenced my responsibilities."

"Your responsibilities? What are you talking about?"

The Princess took a deep breath before responding, "Father has named me his heir"

* * *

_I've seen the Vikings being mentioned in other stories and that's where the idea came from. _

_Read and Review!_


	11. Chapter 11

For a few moments a breathless silence encompassed the room, as all pondered the Princess's revelations. Lord Darius, stood gaping at his niece, his eyes wide with astonishment.

Since the King's anticipated demise the subject of the next ruler was something most people had skirted around. Merlin had come to realise that most had been resigned to the fact that Lord Darius would take the throne and his son Curtin after him. The possibility that Isolde could become Queen hadn't seemed to occur to anyone, least of all Lord Darius who stood with his mouth wide open as if the very idea was unperceivable.

Finally, a sound that deeply resembled a chuckle escaped from the Lord's lips. "You have no proof" He said quietly. Isolde didn't so much as bat an eyelid as she suddenly produced a scroll, handing it to her uncle. "I think you'll find I do"

With hesitant fingers, Lord Darius took the scroll from her. Gently he unrolled the scroll and the others in the room watched with bated breath as his face seemed to grow pale, as pale as snow.

"This…your lying…how it could be possible...I thought he was joking…" Lord Darius rambled as his read the words again and again.

One of the nobles stepped forward, prying the scroll from Lord Darius's unresponsive hands. "I understand how this must feel to you, but I assure you this document is genuine. Isolde showed it to me yesterday and I'm afraid it cannot be disregarded. Come, I'll take you to your bedchambers. I believe you'll feel better with some rest." After sending the Princess an apologetic look, he lead Lord Darius away.

Once the pair were out of the room and the doors closed behind them, the Princess addressed the small gathering. "I understand that this is quite a shock to most of you and I will face much opposition from some of the other courtiers. But we have more imminent matters to deal with now. We will deal with other matters later. I need all of your support and co-operation if Vestavia is to remain strong and unconquered."

Everyone still present in the room nodded and murmured their agreement. Princess- soon to be Queen- Isolde nodded at them. "Thank you for your support." She spoke gratefully and honestly.

"Berys," she addressed the old noble, perhaps older than even Gaius Merlin supposed, "you have seen many battles with the Vikings over the years. Is there a way we could defeat them, assuming that it is the Vikings?"

The man, Berys, took a deep breath and it seemed to be age before he finally spoke, his voice heavy with the clear signs of old age. "The battles and wars against the Vikings have always been long, bloody and brutal. They were always terrible and but we nearly always managed to drive them back with the help of our allies. If the rumours of Jasin siding with the Vikings are true, then we have lost a very vital ally."

"Yes, that may seem to be the case," The Princess mused, "but what of the kingdom of Jaures? It may be a smaller kingdom, but the ties between us has never been stronger. Father has always encouraged a strong alliance between our kingdoms and I believe they would give us the aid we need."

The Princess then called for a messenger to be sent to Jaures, to plead their case and ask for assistance. Soon a suitable messenger was found and sent, with clear instructions to return with their answer as soon as possible.

"Princess," Berys began once the messenger had left, "I believe the assistance from Jaures would give us some hope, but it would not be enough against the Vikings"

"What do you mean?"

"Milady, the Vikings are a brutal people, their skills in battle and weaponry outmatched by no one. Even if we had more men to fight, it would only mean sending more men to their deaths"

"What are you saying Berys?"

"Milady, the only reason why our kingdom has been successful so far against the Vikings is the Pillar of Life. The Pillar of Life has not just been a sacred site where our people have held all manner of ceremonies. No, it was much more than that. For centuries the rock formation has served us as a fortress, providing us with a strategic advantage. From there it was easy to see approaching men and skilled archers were able to take down as many men as possible. Perhaps it was the magic of the place, but the Vikings always seemed to underestimate the importance of the place, they have never tried to take hold of it."

"But the Pillar of Life has been destroyed"

"Yes, Uther Pendragon was a hypocrite. He knew that only magic could destroy such a place and that is what he did. He destroyed it with the aid of magic. The Pillar of Life has been more than just a place of magic, it has provided our people protection for centuries. With the Pillar destroyed, I fear we have little to no hope against the Vikings."

The Princess sighed. "We seem to be at our most vulnerable. My father has just died, this Kingdom is not ready for war. And yet a mighty army that we have no hope of defeating is marching this way. It's almost as if they knew that we are in no shape to fight a war."

"Is it possible that we have a spy, a traitor amongst us?" Eneth mused.

Merlin watched as the others in the room spoke of the possibility of a traitor in their midst and spoke of plans and battle strategies. The topic of preparing for a siege was barely touched upon before dismissed, claiming there was not enough time to move all villagers to within the citadel. Discussions weaved around him as other nobles and knights joined them, but Merlin's mind was not on the talks or the impending battle. Merlin found himself thinking of the Pillar of Life. Since Berys had mentioned the sacred site, Merlin was feeling an unexplainable urge to go to the site. He didn't understand the desperation he felt. Perhaps it was the magic calling him. He tried paying attention to the war discussion around him, but found his mind kept straying back to the Pillar of Life. He just had to see it. It was when the meeting dispersed as everyone went on to make various preparations for the war when Merlin stopped Gareth.

"Gareth can you take me to the Pillar of Life?"

Gareth stared stunned that Merlin would ask such a thing at a time like this. "Um, what?"

"Please, I need to see it"

"Merlin there is a war about to happen. I have to help prepare."

"I know Gareth, I understand, but I have got to go there. I can't explain, but I feel a strong urge to go there"

Gareth watched him for a moment. Perhaps Merlin's desperation and determination showed for Gareth agreed, albeit a bit reluctantly. But Merlin didn't care as long as Gareth took him there.

The Pillar of Life was located to the North-West of Vestavia in the midst of grassland, just some ways away from Fernara Hill. As the pair rode towards the Pillar of Life, the land became more and more barren and desolate. The thick, long grass they rode through gave way to a hard rocky ascent. It was as if they were riding through a rocky desert.

When they finally reached the Pillar of Life, Merlin gasped. Despite the obvious destruction, it was truly an awe-inspiring place. It was eerily quiet as if all signs of life had vanished from this place. The dark empty sky only seemed to add to its emptiness.

Seven rocky pillars jutted out from the ground, standing at about three meters. The seven pillars formed a rough circle. In the centre of the rough circle, there was a rough marking on the ground. Merlin walked closer to investigate and Merlin realised it was some kind of ancient symbol. The symbol didn't look as if it was etched on the stone, but rather part of the stone. The symbol looked faint against the brown ground, and Merlin could see that some parts of it seemed to be burnished out.

"It was here, in this circle, that many people used to have their weddings and christened their children believing the magic of this place gave longevity. Now the magic has been destroyed and people don't come here anymore" Gareth said as he walked up behind Merlin.

But Merlin could feel the gentle hum of magic. It was weak and Merlin doubted any ordinary sorcerer would have felt it, but he could feel it. Merlin ran his fingers over the symbol on the ground and almost gasped at the feeble pulse of magic he felt. It was then he understood. The symbol was the source of the magic in this site. When Uther came here all those years ago, it was this symbol that he had attacked with powerful magic. But this symbol was the magic of the earth itself and cannot be easily destroyed especially by mortal means. Uther may have seemingly succeeded in destroying the source of the magic, but he had not vanquished it completely.

"Those," Gareth gestured to the remains of the fortress like structure to the north of the pillars, "were also destroyed."

The stone fortress was built several meters to the north of the pillars. From what Merlin could see, the fortress was like a high-raised platform that formed a semi-circle around the pillars. It was where archers or watchmen could stand and see far out into the distance. But some sections of it had collapsed and lay in ruins.

"The fortress," Gareth explained, "was something our people built centuries ago and another thing Uther destroyed. We've tried repairing this numerous times, but for some reason the structures would never hold. It's as if the magic of this land had held these stones together and without it, the stone just break apart."

Merlin looked around at the devastation around him. What once would have been a serene place filled to the brim with plants and animals, was now devoid of any life. The ground, where the grass would have once crept over and formed a blanket was now brown and bare. He could feel the earth itself crying in despair. The weak magic of the earth called out to him and Merlin responded.

Gareth didn't know what happened but he could feel it. He could feel as the hollow air suddenly became energised as it cackled with power and magic. Gareth could feel it down to his very core as it filled him with a warmth that he could not explain. For a moment, his memories took him back to his childhood where he and his siblings had eagerly listened to his father's stories. He remembered the stories he told of the Pillar of Life and how it would give a sense of warmth, of immense pleasure to anyone who went there. Gareth had been mesmerised by it as a child, but had begun to doubt the magic of it as he grew older. But now, standing here and feeling the warmth well up inside him, he realised that every word his father had said was the truth.

He watched as the symbol Merlin stood on glowed a bright red. A ball of energy surrounded the magician, circling him and creating a protective barrier. Splashes of different colours whirled and danced around the magician. The earth itself began to rumble and tremble, but Gareth found himself too immersed and mesmerised by the powerful display of magic to notice. He found himself subconsciously stepping closer to towards Merlin but found an invisible force stopping him.

The ball of energy, of magic, surrounding Merlin glinted with power and Gareth watched as it gradually began expand outwards like a shockwave. Stunned, Gareth watched as the dead earth began to revive itself, sprouting life. Grass seemed to appear everywhere the shockwave passed, as the sounds of life began to fill the once eerily quiet place. Even after the shockwave dispersed and vanished moments later, Gareth still looked around him with a strange sense of wonder. Even when a weary Merlin, whose eyes seems to return to their normal blue colour, turned towards him, words still failed him. "What…how…you…" were all Gareth.

Merlin only smiled weakly before staggering towards him. Gareth rushed forward to help him as Merlin's legs failed him and he collapsed to the floor. Gently, Gareth lead the magician back to their horses.

* * *

_I have a feeling that the next chapter is going to be longer. I've written half of it, but there's lots more I want to write. Not sure when I'll post it though..._


	12. Chapter 12

In the courtyard, they were met by the Princess and several knights who had come outside to try to fathom what on earth the shockwave they had felt was. It seem like a normal tremor as nothing appeared to have been damaged, but the shockwave they had felt nearly an hour ago seemed to have rattled the entire kingdom.

The Princess rushed towards them and assailed them with question as soon as she saw them ride into the courtyard. "Where have you two been? Did you feel the tremor? What is wrong with him?"

Gareth waited until he had climbed of his horse, and helped Merlin off his and was supporting him before he responded to the Princess. "It," Gareth began, "well I don't know how to explain, but I do believe Merlin has fixed the Pillar of Life"

"What?" The Princess snapped utterly confused.

"Well perhaps fixed isn't the best word to use," Gareth amended, "perhaps I should say healed? Or restored to its former glory? Yes that sounds much better…"

"What are you talking about?" Isolde snapped, her patience wearing thin.

Gareth inhaled and glanced at the weary Merlin who was leaning against him before he spoke. Isolde looked as if she may explode if Gareth didn't give her an answer soon.

"The Pillar of Life," Gareth said and Isolde nodded and looked at him to continue, "Merlin has healed it. It looks like just as the legends describe it to be"

"Healed it? What do you mean?"

"The tremor you felt? It was magic, Merlin healing the place. Milady, it was truly magnificent, I don't know how to describe it"

"Try" The Princess urged.

Merlin could feel the awe-filled gazes the Princess and knights directed at him as Gareth tried his best to describe what he had just witnessed. Perhaps Merlin may have felt humbled if he wasn't so tired, but all he wanted to do was climb into his bed and sleep for the next week. He felt so weary, so drained of energy. The world seemed to spin and Merlin felt nauseous. Laying his against Gareth's shoulder, he succumbed to the overpowering sleep.

* * *

Merlin woke parched and with a pounding headache. His limbs felt stiff and when he tried to wriggle his feet, all he felt was pain. It seemed someone had moved him to his bed in Eneth's antechamber. The last he remembered was Gareth helping him down from his horse and speaking to the Princess. He tried to sit up but his chest ached from the sheer effort and he flopped back down. In an instant Eneth was rushing towards him, clutching a goblet of what Merlin hoped was water.

"How are you feeling?" Eneth asked as he held the goblet to Merlin's lips.

"Like I've been to hell and back" Merlin croaked after he had taken several sips of water.

"I'm not surprised" Eneth told him. Eneth then tried to feed him bread soaked in soap. Merlin managed a few mouthfuls before he felt as if he might feel sick. His head felt like someone was repeatedly hitting it from within and all he wanted to do was lay his head back down on the soft pillows. Thankfully Eneth let him be and didn't force him to finish his meal. Nestling his head back against the pillows as he watched the back of Eneth move out of the room was the last he remembered.

The next time Merlin woke, he felt much better. His head no longer felt like a beating drum and his chest did not pain him as he tried to sit up. He felt strangely refreshed. The curtains on the window remained closed, but Merlin could still see the rays of sunshine that still escaped into the room. Merlin frowned; how long had he been asleep? His stomach let loose a low rumble and Merlin grimaced, remembering the few mouthfuls of bread Eneth had fed him last and wishing the physician had forced more of the bread down him. Swinging his legs over the bed, Merlin tested his weight. Satisfied that he won't keel over, Merlin gingerly took a step forward. Happy that he hadn't collapsed, Merlin made his way to the main chamber.

Eneth was busying preparing and stocking up on various tinctures and balms. A war did not only mean work for the knights and soldiers. It also meant more work for a physician having to treat all the injured and wounded. Eneth would need to be prepared just as much as the knights would need to be. He turned around having heard the slow, measured steps of Merlin enter the room.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, much, thank you. Though I feel as if I could eat a horse" Merlin responded as he washed his face from a nearby bowl of water.

"That's not surprising considering you haven't had much to eat in two days" Eneth responded turning back to his work. Merlin furrowed his brow. "Two days? Was I out for two days?"

"Yes, though I'm not surprised considering the incredible feat you pulled off with the Pillar of Life. Gareth tried explaining it to me, though I can't say I understood much from his wild ramblings. Help yourself to some breakfast" Eneth told him gesturing to the plate of food on the small eating table. Merlin didn't need to be told twice as he dug in, his mind wandering.

He still didn't know what had happened with the Pillar of Life and didn't know if he'd be able to tell anyone if they asked. All he knew was that the gentle magic of the earth had called out for him, beckoned him and he had responded. He'd been transfixed as he had felt his magic mingle with the magic of the earth. He'd heard before that his magic was unlike any other; that his magic was like the ancient magic itself. When he had felt the earth around him; not just seen the earth or felt the earth under his feet but truly _felt _it with his very being, he understood what they meant. It had been euphoria as he had stood _feeling _the earth itself come to life. Merlin didn't know whether he should feel terrified or welcome the tremendous power he obviously possessed.

He didn't have long to wallow in his thoughts as there was a knock on the door and an apprehensive Princess Isolde peeked through the door.

"How are you feeling?" she asked Merlin as she came closer.

"I've felt better." He told her honestly. The Princess nodded, twiddling her thumbs. Merlin sensed she had something on her mind to speak to him about. It seemed Eneth thought so too as he soon left mumbling something about having patients to see.

"I want to thank you for what you did, Merlin," she began, "Vestavia owes you a great debt"

Merlin smiled in response. "I did what I could"

A soft laugh escaped her lips. "Merlin, I don't think you understand just how much what you did means to us"

"What do you mean?" he asked her confused.

"The Pillar of Life has given us good fortune for centuries and when it was destroyed many dreaded to think what would happen. I was only six then, but I still remember the chaos and devastation that followed."

The Princess looked away sadly.

"What happened?" Merlin asked gently.

"My mother…the Queen, she…she died not two days later" Her eyes glistened and she blinked willing the tears away.

Merlin stared at her, suddenly wishing he hadn't asked. "I'm sorry"

"It's fine" she told him, attempting to keep a cool and collected composure. She cleared her throat before speaking. "The truth is Merlin, you've done more for Vestavia than what we can ever hope to repay you with. You've given us some hope and for that thank you" she said sincerely.

Merlin looked down at his food as he felt his cheeks heat up. He had never been thanked before by anyone other than Gaius especially for performing such incredible feats of magic. Despite the numerous times he had complained to Gaius for not receiving the acknowledgements and congratulations he so clearly deserved, he found himself strangely embarrassed by the Princess's gratefulness. He could hardly explain and had no doubt that Gaius would find this situation rather amusing. "I'm glad I could help"

She smiled, looking down at her hands before looking up at him. "You don't have to of course, I mean this isn't your home so you don't have to and you've done enough for us, but we, well I…"

"What is it?" Merlin furrowed his brow.

"Will you help us? You've shown that you have immense power and that would be of great help to us in the battle against the Vikings. Your magic will give us a huge advantage."

"Of course I will help, you have my word Princess"

"Please, call me Isolde"

"Alright, Isolde it is" he said grinning at her with such cheerfulness that she couldn't help the grin that tugged her own lips.

Merlin soon learned that many things had happened in the past two days while he had been slumbered. Preparations for the war were well underway. Council members and senior knights had been looking over battle plans and strategies. Jaures had also sent their reply and had agreed to provide the aid that Vestavia required. Around fifty of their men would be arriving in a day or so and preparations were being made to accommodate them. The fortress around the Pillar of Life was also being rebuilt. Now that Merlin had restored the magic of the place, the structure was holding. Around forty men were working on it, and several stone masons from local and outlying villages had been summoned to help. Gareth supposed the rebuilding may be completed in another two days or so. Already soldiers had been stationed there just in case the Vikings attacked during then.

The matter of Isolde's leadership was a tentative subject that most were skirting around. It seemed that despite the support from the townspeople and some of the Knights, most nobles had expressed their abhorrence of the very idea of a woman ruling over them. When the document with the King's seal had been shown to them, most had demanded that she marry a suitable man, something Isolde had not yet considered and had no plan to do so. Surprisingly, Lord Darius had spoken is support of his niece. Perhaps he thought that he may be able to influence her to do things his way, but the fact still remained that he supported his niece and most other nobles had no choice but to be silent on the matter. Besides, as Gareth told Merlin, there was an impending war looming that required their attention and this matter was most likely to be reopened once the war was over.

Another thing that had happened while Merlin had been recovering was that the culprit of the King's poisoning was finally found. On the same night that Merlin had restored the Pillar of Life, several knights had discovered a figure skulking in the shadows. They soon realised that it was none other than Fernando, the visiting noble. They had brought him in for questioning and after a few techniques to loosen his tongue a huge plot to undermine the royal family of Vestavia was discovered. Apparently, Fernando was a spy for Jasin and for months now had been acting on Jasin's behalf. He had blackmailed the King's manservant, James by kidnapping his lame sister, into poisoning the King. After having learnt that Merlin was arriving to cure the King, he had decided to finish the job quickly and had fed the King some deadly poison in hopes that the King would be dead before Merlin even had a chance to examine him. With the King dead and the Kingdom in mourning it was the ample opportunity for Jasin to mount his attack together with the Vikings on Vestavia. It was a good plan to conquer Vestavia, however the fact that Jaures was willing ally for Vestavia and Merlin restoring the Pillar of Life were too vital points they had missed. Fernando had been locked up in the dungeons, the Princess wanting to deal with him later. She had also wanted to search for James but had been forced to concede that there were more important matters than look for the manservant. Gareth had also voiced his suspicion of Lord Darius's involvement in Jasin's plan recalling the strange conversation he had witnessed between him and Fernando in the alcove under the servants' staircase. However he had no proper proof and as he was the uncle of their soon to be Queen, it was best to give him the benefits of the doubt.

It was at dawn not two days later when a frenzied knight barged into the throne room claiming that the Vikings were nearing Fernara Hill and the Pillar of Life. The citadel of Vestavia instantly became a flurry of activity as a large army immediately rode out to meet the Vikings. Another much smaller group was to remain behind and protect the citadel and the citizens of Vestavia as well as their future Queen. Despite Isolde's protests, she was forced to remain behind as it would not do for her to be killed before she was even crowned. Merlin casted a shield around the citadel. The shield shimmered in the air and would hopefully protect the citadel from any invasion attacks. Merlin rode with Eneth to Fernara Hill to help the injured and wounded.

Although Merlin was to remain in the Healer's tent with Eneth, he soon found himself in the middle of the battle holding a sword. His skills as a swordsman wasn't his most desirable trait, but you didn't remain the manservant of King Arthur without learning a thing or two. He dodged and blocked attacks as he moved through the mass of men. At least a hundred Vikings had come to battle them. Most of the Vikings were big and burly, their metal helmets with two horns giving them an intimidating aura. But what the Vestavian knights lacked in size, they made up with their skill and speed. The army from Jaures soon joined them providing some much needed support.

Around him he could see men fall on both sides, some struck by swords while other shot down by hidden archers. He saw a Knight of Vestavia hit by a mace that tore his chest open, his bloody innards spilling everywhere. Another knight, who seemed to have lost his sword some time ago was using his fists and feet to pound the enemy, only to be struck in the back. The corpses of the dead became tangled and marred as horses and men alike trampled over them, despite the efforts of the men to remove their dead. The ground beneath them became streaked with red as the blood from the wounded seeped into the earth. Merlin used subtle magic to help the men around him; tripping up men so that they would miss the fatal blow dealt by their enemies, altering the trajectory of arrows flying so that they would fall on enemy soldiers or elsewhere and even blasting the Vikings back a few feet. By midday exhaustion and weariness was spreading through the men, but still ploughed on determined to protect their Kingdom till their last breath.

Perhaps it was Merlin's use of magic, or perhaps it was the sheer skill of the knights of Vestavia and Jaures, but by mid-afternoon most of the Vikings had fallen and only the stragglers were left. It was a sure victory for Vestavia, but Merlin couldn't help the worry he felt. He'd been told that the Vikings were skilful fighters, second to no one. But these Vikings did not fit that description. Yes they had been skilled, but they had not been extraordinary like Merlin had been expecting. He tried to shake the dread gnawing at him, but it seemed his worries were confirmed when another wave of Vikings charged towards them, some on foot and some on horses. The Knights were drained, they did not have the energy to fight a fresh group of Vikings. With dread, the knights turned to face the new wave of men as one. Some of the knights collapsed with fatigue unable to continue, while others fought with determination. Their men needed rest, but still more Vikings came upon them. Merlin tried blasting the approaching Vikings back, but could only manage a small shove. He still had not recovered completely from using immense power to restore the Pillar of Life and he had expended a lot of energy doing magic throughout the day. Merlin was truly spent but he had to keep going.

It was then that a Knight of Jaures made a shocking discovery that truly had Merlin's heart sink to the ground. The knight had plunged his sword into an enemy's stomach when something quite horrifying happened. The sword just went through the Viking's stomach as if it was nothing more than just air. And it was, Merlin realised as he watched the figure of the Viking flicker for a moment then continue charging as if he hadn't been stabbed at all. This new wave of Vikings were nothing more than just illusions, apparitions that fought like real men, but would not die. Merlin was too busy gaping at their rotten luck that he didn't notice the apparition that was advancing towards him. With a practiced move, Merlin dodged the blow and blocked with his sword. His exhaustion soon caught up with him and Merlin soon found himself on the ground staring up at the leering apparition as a sword plunged towards his heart.

* * *

_Terribly sorry for the long wait! This chapter took ages to write plus I had heaps of coursework I had to get on with._

_Anyway I have a question for you, my dear readers. How do you think the apparitions should be defeated? I'd love to hear your ideas as I'm quite stuck. _

_My mid-session break is next week, so hopefully I'll get a few more chapters underway!_


	13. Chapter 13

_I really have no excuse for this. I really don't know what to say. I'm really really sorry! *looks sheepish*_

_So anyway..._

* * *

Merlin became paralysed with shock as he stared up at the sword tip looming closer. He knew he should fight or at the least move away, but he found he could not. His throat closed up and a silent scream escaped his lips. Everything around him faded away, leaving him staring up at the apparition with a strange sense of calm. Air rushed into his ears, causing a buzzing sound to echo through his ear. The sword was almost about to stab him and Merlin closed his eyes waiting for the impact, but the impact never came. There was a clash of metal and Merlin opened his eyes to see the Viking illusion flung back. He looked up at the grinning face of Curtin, Lord Darius's son, and grabbed the hand that was held out.

"Can't have the magician dying on us can we?" Curtin joked as he hauled Merlin to his feet. Merlin only smiled weakly turning to face the illusions that were now surging towards him. Merlin had been in so many near-death situations that he didn't even bat an eye-lid as he immediately began fending himself against the onslaught of illusions.

"What kind of sorcery is this?" Curtin exclaimed as he attempted to punch an apparition in the shoulder but only succeeded in causing his hand to go through and the illusion to flicker for a moment before becoming stable again and resuming its attack.

Merlin found himself back to back with Curtin as the illusions surrounded the pair. Merlin dodged and blocked aptly, occasionally blasting the illusions. Blasting fire at them did not work, as the fire balls merely passed through and illusions regenerated themselves again. Nothing he tried worked on them, as they simply ploughed through. Behind him, Curtin was a fighting terrier. He knocked back the illusions left and right only to have them getting up charging again.

"Any idea on how to defeat them?" Curtin yelled over the clash of metal and the agonising screams of men.

Merlin shook his head, but, realising that Curtin couldn't see him yelled, "No"

Merlin had seen and fought immortal soldiers and even the dead, but never something as intangible as these illusions. Swords and crossbows did not work on them as they simply went through them, and magic did not do much damage to them either. As the magician here, everyone expected him to come with the solution, a way to defeat the illusionary Vikings. There was no telling when the real soldiers would attack, if there were any, hence a solution needed to be found quickly. The Knights of Vestavia and Jaures were increasingly becoming exhausted. If they felt anything like the dead-weight Merlin felt he was, then it was only a matter of an hour or so before the Vikings claimed victory.

Merlin suddenly found himself thinking of Gaius. Gaius would know what to do, but there was no Gaius here. "I don't know how long we can go on like this. Isn't there something you can do?" Curtin shouted.

Around him Merlin could see the laboured movements of the battle weary men.

"Nothing I try seem to have any effect on the men" Merlin yelled back. Merlin really wished Gaius was here right now. Gaius always knew what to do, he always had a solution. Merlin had an inexplicable urge to see the old physician.

Suddenly Merlin found himself being sucked into a black void. Everything around him contorted and twisted into black nothingness as the ground beneath him warped into empty air. He could hear someone call his name, trying to reach him. He tried to reach out, call out but it fell on deaf ears. He was spinning in a black swirl. Then as suddenly as it began, he felt himself plummet to the ground, collapsing in a mass of limbs on the stone floor.

Everything seemed too quiet. Where were the dying screams of the men and the clanging of swords and armour? Where was he?

Wearily, Merlin opened his eyes and almost gasped at where he was. He nearly cried as he looked up the old man hunched over a bench, examining a vial of potion. Everything was so familiar; his mop of white hair, the long brown robes and even the hunched way he held himself. The various instruments and tinctures strewn across the tables and the familiar smell of dried herbs wafting across the room brought tears to Merlin's eyes. Oh how he had missed this place. He tried to get up, but his head spun and he fell back with a cry. The other man turned around and Merlin watched as his eyes widened in surprise.

"M…Merlin?" his voice was a mere whisper, almost not daring to hope as he rushed over. Merlin felt two comforting hands on his shoulder as he was helped to stand. "It's really you, but how?"

As Merlin found himself staring up into the two familiar grey eyes and a face that seemed to have aged ten years within a matter months, the fact that he had just accidently transported himself here seemed almost trivial. His eyes became moist as Merlin was pulled into a tight embrace. "I've really missed you" Merlin told the man who was more or less his father. A feeling of warmth and calmness spread through him as Merlin relished the embrace.

"I've missed you too. It's not been the same without you" Gaius responded, "But how did you come to be here?" Gaius asked pulled back.

"I don't know myself. One minute I was in the battlefield and the next I am here" Merlin waved his hand as if demonstrating his sudden appearance in Camelot.

"Remarkable…" Gaius trailed off. Was it some form of teleportation? He had seen many sorcerers with that ability. Then what Merlin had said seemed to register. "Battlefield? Merlin what…"

"Oh, Gaius I don't know what to do! They expect me to know, to be able to defeat them. Oh Merlin's got magic! He'll know what to do! But I don't, Gaius, I don't. It's like the immortal soldiers again. How do you defeat illusions? Fight illusions? They're illusions not something solid you can attack. Oh what do I do? They're expecting me to figure it out, but how? And I'm wasting too much time! More will die the longer it takes…"

Gaius patiently listened to the garbled prattle of his ward, but understood none of it. What was this battle Merlin was talking about? And these illusions? Gaius almost smiled in relief. It was like these past months hadn't occurred at all, like a normal ordinary day where Merlin had discovered some magical threat that he needed to stop and was throwing a fit about. Gaius felt as if a large boulder had suddenly lifted from his shoulders. He didn't know what he had been so worried about the past months. Every waking moment had been spent with needless worrying, wondering how Merlin was doing, if he was even alive. Trouble never ceased to follow Merlin. But Gaius needn't have worried. It was Merlin for heaven's sake, he always found a way, even if sometimes rather foolish and idiotic, but he always was optimistic.

"Merlin" Gaius called.

Merlin stopped his wild ramblings and stared at Gaius with wide eyes.

"I don't understand what you are talking about"

Merlin sighed. "I'm sorry Gaius. I guess this is just overwhelming, that's all. I never imagined I'd find myself in Camelot within a blink of an eye."

"Yes, I don't suppose it happens to anyone normally" Gaius smiled. Only Merlin could've accidently teleported himself somewhere.

"So what was it you were yattering about?" Gaius asked.

"Gaius I don't have much time, but I don't suppose you know of a way to defeat illusions?"

Gaius blinked. _Only Merlin _he found himself thinking again.

Merlin sighed before telling Gaius everything that had happened as briefly as possible. He knew it left Gaius with more questions than it had answered but there was not enough time. The knights of Vestavia and Jaures had already pushed themselves to the limit. They could not go on.

"So do you know of a way to defeat them?" Merlin asked once he had briefed Gaius on what had happened. Gaius looked thoughtful as he moved to his vast collection of books.

"What is it?" Merlin asked, following Gaius.

"It would be something similar to that of the cup of life…" Gaius mused.

"Cup of Life? What? How?" Merlin was confused

Gaius did not respond as he began skimming through a large time. Making a noise of displeasure, he set the thick volume aside and got another while Merlin hovered nearby anxiously.

"What is it you are looking for?" Merlin asked. He had hoped that Gaius would've known a solution. He did not want to spend time looking through books.

"Vessels…channels…conduits….things like that"

Merlin was still confused. "I don't understand"

Gaius finally looked up. "Merlin from what you've said I can only imagine that some kind of vessel or conduit has been used to contain the enchantment. Creating illusions and keeping them moving and fighting requires so much concentration and energy, especially if as you say the illusions act as an army. It's already quite difficult to maintain the illusions, but even more so when you have a large number to act as an army. That's why I'm willing to bet the enchanter would've have invested in some kind of vessel."

"So if we find the vessel and destroy it, then the illusions will disappear?" Merlin asked thoughtfully.

"Perhaps, but Merlin don't assume it's as simple as that"

"What do you mean?"

Gaius did not answer immediately, preferring to find a better explanation in his books. At last he seemed to find what he was looking for, as he lightly jabbed the page with his finger turning it towards Merlin. Merlin glanced at it with a furrowed brow, then looked up at Gaius. It seemed his ward still wasn't too enthusiastic about reading.

"Merlin, to cast and maintain an enchantment to the magnitude of what you described takes enormous power. I'd say the sorcerer has used a few different spells and charms to create the illusions, give them life-like features and have them imitate soldiers. A vessel may have been used to sustain and maintain the enchantments. But Merlin, a vessel can only be destroyed a certain way specific to the enchantments contained within it. You need to first learn what kind of enchantments have been placed before attempting to destroy it"

"How will…"

Whatever Merlin was about to ask was cut off as a knock sounded on the door, sounding much louder than it should in Merlin's ears. Merlin stared at Gaius with wide eyes. It would've almost been comical if it were not for the proverbial axe hanging above Merlin's neck that would come crashing down as soon as someone learnt that the warlock, a fugitive in the eyes of this kingdom's law, was inside the city. As much as Gaius loved Arthur, who may not have been as…narrow-minded…as his father, he knew magic was one subject where the King was relentless. Gaius knew that the King really couldn't be blamed for his short-sightedness when it came to magic, but it did not excuse the fact that he did not even try to understand the complexity of magic and the physician wasn't too sure if he would try to execute his beloved ward, not that he was ever going to give it a chance for it to ever happen.

With a huff, Gaius steered the unresponsive warlock towards the small room at the back, a room that had once been occupied by the said warlock. Gaius hadn't had the heart to change anything and apart from the dust particles gathered, nothing had changed since the night Merlin had fled for his life. Pushing Merlin into the room, hoping he'd get the hint to teleport himself out of Camelot as soon as he possibly could, he shut the door and turned to greet his unsolicited visitor.

His unsolicited visitor turned out to be a concerned husband wanting some kind of pain relief for his suffering pregnant wife. After giving the man what he wanted, and shooing the rather confused man out of his chambers he turned to the back room. He had hoped that Merlin had taken his subtle hint, but was pleasantly surprised to see that Merlin was still there, seated on the old rickety bed, wearing a rather dismayed expression.

"I thought you would've gone" Gaius said softly, but was glad to have the chance to at least bid his ward a proper farewell. The last time, everything had happened so suddenly that Gaius had hardly had enough time to say good-bye to his ward.

"What is it?" Gaius asked as he moved to sit beside Merlin. It was then that he caught sight of the hollow on the floor, a hollow where Merlin had once kept his prized magical possessions, the possessions that had either been burnt or stored in the underground vaults with all the other _dangerous _objects.

"I'm sorry Merlin. Arthur had your room searched and…" Gaius trailed off unable to continue. Merlin nodded, making a gesture that he understood and that by no means was it Gaius's fault. But Gaius could not help but curse his cowardice. He should've put up more of fight, he should've…his thoughts trailed off as he realised Merlin was speaking.

"…don't know how I got here. I just thought of you and here I am. But how do I get back? I tried to do the same thing but it doesn't work"

"I don't know Merlin," Gaius said gravelly, "but you need to leave soon. Arthur is not the man he once was, he may not be as merciful should he discover you here"

A brief hint of pain flashed across Merlin's face at the mention of Arthur, but vanished as the warlock grew thoughtful.

"Perhaps Kilgarrah can help me" Merlin mused thoughtfully.

Gaius watched his ward almost warily. "What are you planning?"

"I'll ask Kilgarrah to take me back to Vestavia. Gaius I need to get back quickly. A horse just isn't fast enough. If only I can figure out how I teleported myself here"

"And should you be discovered while you are sneaking through Camelot?"

And there it was; the insanely cheeky smile that Gaius had missed over the past months. "I'll be careful, Gaius, promise"

"Somehow, I don't feel too reassured" Gaius told the young man. For that was what he was. He wasn't the same frightened boy who had walked in here and saved him from breaking his back all those years ago. No, Merlin had grown beyond that. He was older, more mature and if Gaius was honest with himself more confident with his magic. Gaius could feel the web of magic cocooning Merlin and he knew his ward was finally able to be himself, something he was denied all his life. Gaius was glad, that despite the unpleasantness of the situation, that at least Merlin was able to grow into his magic, something he couldn't quite afford to do in Camelot. After a bidding him farewell and promising to visit soon, Merlin took his leave and Gaius couldn't help the prick of worry that entered his heart. Merlin could be scarily selfless at times and Gaius could only hope the foolish warlock took care of himself properly.

* * *

Half an hour later, Merlin found himself sitting in the usual meadow waiting for Kilgarrah to arrive. Camelot seemed to be the same yet different at the same time. It was something Merlin could not explain.

Merlin recalled the shock he felt when he had almost run into Arthur, while he was sneaking through the palace corridors. Merlin had all but a moment to press himself against the dark alcove before the King could see him. Arthur too looked no different from what Merlin remembered. Yet there was a steely glint to his features as he had marched down the corridor with two guards following him. It was the look of a man who had had seen too many betrayals, who had gone through too much heart break and it was all Merlin could do to comfort the man, the man- dare he admit it- who was once his best friend. He wondered how Arthur felt about him now. Arthur had never took betrayal well, and Merlin's with no doubt was probably the worst. But Merlin refused to feel guilty about something he could not control, refused to feel guilty for not sharing something that would've most likely gotten him killed.

As Merlin had watched the typically oblivious Arthur walk past, he couldn't help but notice the golden crown sitting imposingly upon the blonde's head. Merlin couldn't explain what thought, or lack of, had occurred to him then, but in a bout of mischievousness he flicked his hand causing the golden crown to tumble to the ground and roll away. Merlin had to clamp his mouth shut to stop the laughter the indignation and annoyance flashed across the King's face as he glared at the guards following him and ordered them to get. The sight of the two guards scrambling and running to fetch the King's crown nearly had Merlin burst into peals of laughter.

Thinking of that caused Merlin to collapse into giggles and that was how Kilgarrah found him when the Great Dragon arrived moments later.

"You seem to be in a better mood since I saw you last, you warlock. What amuses you so?" Kilgarrah chuckled as he landed in front of Merlin.

"It is nothing" Merlin said.

If Kilgarrah was wondering why Merlin was in Camelot, the very city he was banished from, he did not voice it and instead listened to Merlin as he asked to be taken to Vestavia. After grumbling about being treated like a horse, something Merlin heard enough of from the dragon, Kilgarrah finally conceded to taking Merlin back to Vestavia.

* * *

_To be honest with you, I wanted to include the defeat of the Vikings and conclude the whole Vikings battle this chapter but I fear the chapter would've been incredibly long._

_I thought it best to stop there plus I really wanted to get another chapter out soon and if I was going to include the final defeat it would be atleast another two weeks before I updated. (It's already taken me so long, I don't want to keep my wonderful readers waiting:))_

_The Arthur's crown part was something I always imagined Merlin doing and I this was good as any place to include. It isn't as humorous as I had originally imagined it, but this kind of flows with the story (well in my opinion anyway)_

_Anyway, how do you think the vessel should be destroyed? I've been leaning towards dragon's breath (partly because it's the only thing I could think of), but if any of you have any other more original (frankly I don't think dragon's breath is very original, but it's what I have) ideas I'd love to hear it! Really, I would!_

_Till next time:)_


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